It's no secret that easy-to-use, effective network administration software is essential to supporting the 21st-century learning environment. As classroom computers continue to multiply--and personnel budgets continue to shrink--school network administrators need the capacity to be in hundreds of places at once.

Effective network administration software allows school IT professionals to manage multiple computers across multiple platforms from a centralized location. Administrators must be able to secure those environments against digital threats and harmful internet content, while providing support to teachers in the classroom.

Fortunately for school leaders, the latest generation of network administration software allows you to do just that. Here are three examples of tools that are being used in schools with great success.

Remote troubleshooting--without interrupting the end user

CrossTec Corp., a provider of remote access, support, and training solutions, this past spring released a new version of its NetOp Remote Control software. Version 8.0 enables system administrators to remotely troubleshoot students', teachers', or staff members' computers without actually controlling their machines. This way, computer users can work without interruption while an administrator troubleshoots their machine, or several machines at once, from a remote location.

The Remote Management Console, new to version 8.0, allows system administrators to check the Windows Event log, determine the amount of available disk space on a machine with the Disk Drives option, restart Services, and even run command files directly from the console.

"The Remote Management Console provides additional R.O.I. [return on investment] benefits to an application that already has a solid reputation for saving organizations time and money," said Robert Rounsavall, technical product manager for NetOp Remote Control. "By eliminating the down time associated with remote troubleshooting, end users can remain productive without interruptions from administrators taking control of their machine."

In an education environment, "you've got one or two people supporting 500 or 600 computers," said Rounsavall, explaining why the product is particularly useful for schools. NetOp Remote Control saves the time it would take for IT support staff to visit each computer individually to check and see what's wrong--and possibly provide a fix.

Besides offering secure remote access and network support, the software also provides inventory management, file transfer, and synchronization features, Rounsavall said. It includes cross-platform support for Windows, Mac, Solaris, and Linux operating systems.

"One unique thing about NetOp: A user can hit a link on the desktop that hooks up with any [remote management device or platform] that the school might be using. The school administrator is sent an eMail [message] and can connect to the teacher's desktop and repair the problem right there, even from a Blackberry," Rounsavall added.